L76/. 


ad 


STEPHEN  B,  WEEKS 

CL4S5  OF  1686;  PHD  THE  JOHNS  HOPKINS  UNIVERSFTY 


OF   THE 

UMVERSiriiY  OF  N«l  CAROUM 
ME  WEEKS  COLUECTION 

OF 


^o^ii.^  -  n  i^ 


UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


00032739029    - 

THE  NORTH  CAROLINA  COLLECTION 

THIS  TITLE  HAS  BEEN  MICROFILMED 


THiS  ircM ,; . 

ONTHEGai-- 


1 


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FOREST  SCENE, 


K) 


ntrodaetory. 


In  future,  Linville  will  depend  for  advertising,  mainly 
upon  its  intrinsic  merits  as  seen  by  the  public. 

But.  as  at  tlie  Battle  of  Lexington.  "The  first  shot 
that  was  heard  around  the  world,"  had  to  he  fired,  so 
this    pamphlet    is    sent    forth    as    an    introduction. 


EMMONS   AND    GRANDFATHER    MOUNTAINS    FROM    BELOW    LiNV/ILLE. 


EXPLANATORY. 

Since  1SS7,  the  Linville  IMPRo^•EME^■T  Company,  a  corporation  composed  of  capitalists  from 
Boston,  ^-e^v  York,  Philadelpliia,  North  and  South  Carolina.  .Missouri  and  Kansas,  has  been  selecting 
the  lands,  perfecting  titles,  making  surveys,  and  doing  the  preliminary  ^v,;,rk  necessary  in  planning  a 
resort  for  health  and  pleasure. 

Theseleclionofaplace  was  the  most  important  step.  .Mr.  .S.  T.  Kelsey.  an  experienced  town- 
builder,  after  making  a  thorough  examination  and  study  of  the  mountains  of  Western  North  Carolina, 
became  satisfied  that  on  the  headwaters  of  theLin\-ille  River,  in  Mitchell  County,  was  a  location  peculiarly 
adapted  to  the  contemplated  enterprise. 

I  pon  his  recommendation  this  site  was  chosen,  and  the  place  was  naturally  and  appropriately 
named   Liwille,  from  the  river  on   which  it  was  located. 

Sufficient  land  wa5  bought  so  that  there  would  be  no  obstacle  in  the  way  of  laying  out  the  ground 
to  the  best  advantage  and  in  the  most  appro\ed   manner. 

The  Enterprise  is  oi  such  magnitude  that  the  Company  find  it  advisable  to  devote  their  entire 
attention  to  improving  the  property  ;  and  believe  that  the  best  means  of  doing  this  is  by  concentrating 
their  efforts  in  making  good  streets,  avenues  and  roads,  in  such  manner  as  to  be  of  the  greatest 
permanent  benefit  t.j  the  place.  It  will  be  their  endeavor  to  retain  the  beautiful  natural  features,  and 
sj    to    utilize    them,     that    Liwille    will    be   unique  and  unrivaled. 

■\\  e  believe  that  the  public  will  appreciate  the  effort  and  understand  the  situation.  On  reaching 
Li.wiLLE.  therefore,  do  not  expect  to  find  a  finished  tjwn,  A  foundation  is  being  laid  with  care  and 
skill,    and  those  coming  in  are  expected  to  help  build  the  superstructure. 


WESTERN     NORTH     CAROLINA 

has  already  a  ^vide  reputation  for  healthfulness,   and  for  the  beautv  of  its  scenerv 

,,     "™  .^°"^'  S°"'^   E^«'  ^nd  ^^est  thousands  visit  the   section   summer  and    winter-   hotels  are 
filled    the   entire  year,  and  railroad  travel   is  continuous. 

are    -  nenT  '^1  "  J'   """""u'    '^''   '^'  ''°'°"  "'""'^  ^"'^  ^'^'"h""  -^"^  S-thern  resorts,   where  hotels 
are  open  for  only  a  few  months  each  season. 

it    and  to!n"r?'"  °'""'°"  '"  """'  ""'^"  "^'  ^^""^  "'^  ^"^  ^'--^-  '"'''  '--  -^^out  seeking 
It,  ana  towns  are  growmg  mto  cities.  ^>-<viiig 

Railroads  which  have  heretofore  avoided  the  mountain  ranges,  because  of  expense  now  see 
then-  importance,  and  in  many  directions  are  preparing  to  penetrate  them 

and    .f^"^™^^^'^  Carolina,  with  its  valuable  forests,  rich  soil,  promising  mineral   resources    pure  water 
and   fine  climate,  has  now  entered  an  era  of  great  progress, 

LINVILLE. 

In  many  respects  Linville  is  essentially  different  from  any  enterprise  ^•et  started  in  North  Carolina 
ana,  as  lar  as  we  know,  in  this  countrv. 

Its  points  of  distinction  will  commend  it.  They  are  due  in  part  to  natural  advantages  not  obtain- 
able elsewhere,  and  in  part  to  the  fact,  that  it  has  been  laid  out  for  a  large  place,-  everv  necessitvand 
requirement  tor  the  future  has  been  considered  and,  as  far  as  practicable,  provided  for  in' the  be^innin" 

I  he  usual  custom  of  choosing  a  railroad  crossing  for  a  town  site,  has  been  departed  fron?  " 

i  he  site  ha.s  been  chosen  independently,  upon  the  merits  of  the  location,  and  will  command  rail- 
road  iaciitics  as  they  become  necessary  ;  surrounding  gaps  rendering  it  easilv  accessible 

I  he  tract,  with  litde  grading,  is  sufiiciently  level  for  fine  streets,  and  at 'the  same  time  is  undulatin-. 
enough  for  thorough  drainage.  "'luuiatin^ 


At  various  levels,  upon  different  slopes,  every  protection  from  and  exposure  to  sun  and  wind  can 
be  found,  so  that  persons  locating  for  summer,  winter  or  permanent  homes,  can  select  building 
sites  t'"i  suit  their  tastes  and  needs. 

The  principal  avenues  are  laid  out  loo  feet  wide  ;  streets,  75  feet;  allevs,  25  feet:  blocks,  325  feet 
square:   regular  lots    25x150  feet  each. 

Outside  of  the  town  site  proper,  a  large  boundary  is  being  laid  off  so  that  each  part  will  be  applied 
to  the  purpose  to  which  it  seems  best  adapted.  Here  the  roads  are  being  arranged  with  the  idea 
of  securing  the  combined  advantages  of  town  and  rural  life  :  while  communicating  directly  with  the 
centre,  many  of  them,  however  large  the  town  may  grow,  need  not  become  business  thoroughfares, 
and  we  can  conceive  of  no  contingencies  that  would  tempt  public  or  private  interests  to  make 
anything  of  them  but  rural  grounds.  Along  these  roads,  suburban  lots  will  be  sold  of  dimensions 
to  suit  the  lay  of  the  land  and  the  wants  of  purchasers. 

Two  avenues,  with  a  strip  of  forest  between,  which  will  be  left  as  a  park,  extend  northward 
along  each  side  of  the  Linville  river  to  its  source. 

In  the  plans,  out-door  games  have  been  provided  for — tennis,  archery,  ball  and  cricket ;  and 
suitable  grounds  have  been  reserved  for  fair-grounds  and  a  trotting  course. 

Linville  being  situated  about  latitude  36°  and  longitude  82°  and  having  an  elevation  ranging 
from  3,800  feet  at  the  town  site,  to  about  6,000  feet,  the  highest  peak  of  the  Grandfather  mountain, 
has  a  remarkable 

CLIMATE. 

The  atmosphere  is  pure  and  invigorating.  In  summer  the  air  is  cool,  the  thermometer  seldom, 
going  above  So°,  with  an  average  o[  about  65°.  The  winters  are  short  and,  unlike  those  of  the  North, 
are  not  continuous.  Occasionally  the  mercury  falls  below  zero,  and  sometimes  the  grouiid  will  be 
frozen  or  covered  with  snow  fc>r  two  or  three  weeks,  but  usuallv  the  farmer  can  work  in  the  ground 
much  cif  the  time,    and  the  invalid  finds  but  few  davs  uncomfortablv  cold  for  out-door  exercise. 


?&:. 


\\uh    lempL'iate    winters    and  cool    summers,     pure  air    and    water,     and   fine    climate 
THE     HEALTHFULNESS 
of   Linville  is  assured.      For    many  years  past  tired,    nerv,.,us  people,    and    those    sufferin-  fi-,.m   malarial 
poison  and    thn.at   and  lun-   troubles,  ha^•e   frequented  this  region   and  have,  we   beiie\-e,\een  invariabl\- 
benefited. 

While  Linville  lias  an  e.xxellent  outlook  as  a  business  centre,  its  chief  claim  is  as  a  pleasure  and 
health   resort. 

Health  and  recreation  go  naturally  together  :  and  where,  in  the  United  States,  can  a  place  be 
found  with  summer  and  winter  climate  so  equable,  or  with  finer  air  or  purer  water  .=  a  place  where 
nature  does  more  toward  reUeying  the  cares  and  ills  of  man,  or  where  one  can  locate  with  a  better 
assurance  of  good  health  and  long  life.' 

Literary  people  and  brain-workers,  especially,  wWl  find  Linville  suited  t..i  their  wants.  The  alti- 
tude gives  an  in\igorating  atmosphere  which  acts  as  a  tonic  and  goes  far  toward  overcomino-  fatio-ue 
and   making  lile  profitable  and  pleasant.  °         ° 

SCENERY. 
Prominent  among  the  points  ..f  interest  in  the  vicinity  are  Table  Rock,  Hawk.s-bill  (the  Towers 
ot    Linville),  Grandmother    :»Iountain,     Blowing    Rock,  The    Pinnacles,   Lost    Cove    Clift"   Yellow    Roan 
and   Sugar    .Mountain.s.    Bynums    Blutf   and    Linville    Falls;   but  undoubtedlv    the    greatest  attraction  in 
this  region,  in  fact   in   North    Carolina,  is  the 

GRANDFATHER     MOUNTAIN. 

It  has  a  ruggedness  and  grandeur  not    possessed  by  any  other  peak  in  the  Eastern  States. 
Toward    the   summit,    e.-vcej.t  where   broken   bv  sharp    peaks   and   precipitous   cliffs,    it    is   covered 
with  a  growth    o(   spruce  and    balsam.  gi\ing  it  a  dark,  sombrj  appearance. 

Being  the  highest  point  in  the  Blue   Ridge,    it  is  the   pinnacle  of  the  great   water-shed   east   of   the 


GRANDFATHER    MOUNTAIh. 


Mississippi.  From  its  slopes  streams  flow  in  all  directions,  some  finding  their  wav  into  the  Peedee 
and  Santee  Ri\ers  and  thence  into  the  Atlantic  Ocean  ;  others  running  into  the  Tennessee  and 
Great  Kanawha,  and  through  them   to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 

Towering  high  above  the  surrounding  peaks  the  Grandfather  alfbrds  a  magnificent  view 
From  its  top  can  be  seen  the  great  ranges  and  cross  ranges  of  the  Apalachian  chain  for  more  than 
one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  :  the  peaks  of  Otter,  in  Virginia  ;  the  Cumberland  Mountains,  of  Ken- 
tucky and  Tennessee:  the  great  bald-headed  Roan;  the  Lin\ille  Towers:  the  lofty  Blacks,  and  lesser 
ranges,  peaks  and  hills  innumerable.  Between  the  mountain  ranges  lie  beautiful,  quiet  vallevs, 
dotted  with  farms  and  traversed  by  sparkling  streams.  To  the  East  and  South-east  the  I'lmt-hills 
recede  in  wavy  undulations  until  the  vision    is   lost  in  the  plains  of  the  Atlantic  slope. 

The  Grandfather  ^Mountain  has  been  reser\-ed  as  an  extensive  park,  where  the  natural   features  of 
mountain    and    forest    will    be    protected.       Here,    high    above    human    habitation,     is  a  supplv  of  cold, 

PURE     WATER. 

sufficient  to  meet  all  future  demands.  Hurrying  d.:iwn  from  the  steep  slopes,  through  dense,  co'il 
forests,  the  numerous  branches  of  the  Linville  unite,  to  form  a  stream  of  rare  beautv,  which,  after 
running  for  fourteen  miles,  with  gradual  fall,  through  a  gentlv  rcilling  valle^■,  plunges  suddenlv 
into  a  narrow  gorge,  among  rugged,  precipitous  cliffs,  forming  the  Lixville  F.\lls  :  whence,  after 
resdng  for  a  moment  in  a  deep,  clear  pool,  it  rushes  as  a  turbulent,  boisterous  torrent  into  the 
distant  lowlands. 

ROADS. 

To  the   Parks   and   all    points  of  interest,   drives  and  bridle  paths  are  being  laid   out  with   care  to 
secure    easy    grade;    running    o\er    smooth,     level     lands,    through     dense     forests,    almost    shutting    out 


FROM    GRArSDFAThER    MOUNTAIN     AT     DAYBREAK 


the  Iisht  iif  day,  along  the  crests   i:if  narrow  ridges   givins 


extensive   views,    around   steep   mountain  sides, 


..\er  mountain  torrents,  amid  o\erhanging  rocks  and  rugged  clifls,  this  s}stem  of  roads  will  stand 
unrivaied^      Here,  at   difterent   elevations,    the   naturalist  will    find   in    close    proximity  the 

FAUNA     AND     FLORA, 

found    in    the    lowlands    only    by   traveling    ,  ,ver   1,500    to    2,000   miles  of  latitude. 

Birds  that  do  not  summer  in  the  low  countrv,  except  in  the  extreme  north,  remain  here  the 
year    rouml,  while   those   comnKin   to   the  country   farther   south,    are   regular   summer  visitors 

Within  a  half  day's  ramble  one  may  meet  with  bal.sam,  spruce,  beech,  birch,  maple,  ash  .  .ak 
poplar,  lin.  buckeye,  gum.  magnolia  and  most  other  trees  common  t.j  the  nortliern  and  central 
States,  \vith  others  native  unl}-  to  the  South.  Nowhere  else  have  we  seen  such  a  ^■ariet^-  ami  ].rofusion 
of  wild  llowers.  ..x  such  a  continuation  ...f  uni'olding  beauty,  from  the  opening  of  the  Arbutus  and 
and   Claytonia  to  the  fading  of  the   Aster  and   the    Golden  Rod. 

THE     GEOLOGICAL     FORMATIONS 

are  among  the  oldest,  and  being  highly  crystalline  afford  an  mteresting  and  profitable  field  for  invest! . 
gation  and  enterprise. 

Here,  in  Mitchell  county,  are  the  richest  mines  of  •■  Xorth  Carolina  :\Iica  " — known  as  the  stand- 
ard and  within  ten  miles  are  the  noted  Cranberrv  irc>n  mines. 

Good  building  stone  is  plentiful  and  easily  obtained.  Clay,  suitable  for  bricks  of  best  qualit^■,  is 
found  and  is  being  developed,  Slate  is  abundant,  and.  though  untested,  seems  to  be  of  excel'ent 
qualitw 


KALMIA    AND    RHODODENDRON, 


THE     SURROUNDING     LANDS 

All  gram  crops  grown  in  the  northern  States  do  well    and  fruits  nn,l  .^.r.r.M^  -     ■ 

Aluch  of  the  land   i^  -fill   r-  it,         ■  \egetables  grou-  to  perfection 

value.  °  reasonable  figures    and  will  rapidly  appreciate  in 

Lin\ille  is  the  natural 

BUSINESS     CENTRE 
for  a  large  fertile  section   of  countrv,  which   will    be  rapidlv   .«tled    and    h..  n-    ■ 
distribudng  r.oint  '  Le  lapian    settled    and    has  nu    important    t. 


'wn  as 


Ihere    is  sufficient  oak   and  hemlock  hnrV    t  ,     ^r,-!,        i  ■        ■     , 

nemiuck  haik    t,.  supple  a    large   tanning  industry  for    many  years. 

ARTISANS. 

an    and  impure  water.  nawn  js  ia.\cLi  m   oaa 

:ow,:,rl7''"   "  ""   P'^"^^"^^^^    '^"-   -J"^-   ™-^  -'-shing   sleep,  a   better  appetite  or  feels  better  able 


TROUT    FISHING    IN    THE    LINUILLE 


BUSINESS     SITES 

and  suburban    lots  ^viU  be   sold   to   all   wishing  to   locate,     engage   in   business   or  interest   themselves   in 
Linville.  at  such  figures  that  they  can  realize  a  good  profit  on  their  investments. 
Prices  will  be  given  on  application 

CHURCHES,     SCHOOLS    AND     LIBRARIES. 

Several  of  the  leadmg  Christian  denominations  have  already  stated  their  determination  to  erect 
houses  of  worship  in  Linville.      Some  of  them  will   doubtless  build  the  coming  season. 

Linville,  because  of  its  healthful  location,  is  peculiarlv  suited  for  an  educational  centre,  and  the 
Lnpr.:.vement  Company  will  aid  liberally  m  the  establishment  of  first-class  institutions  of  learning, 
libraries,  museums  and  whatever  else  is  practicable  and  desirable  for  the  welfare  of  the  community 

HOTEL. 

A  comfortable,    well-furnished  hotel  is  now  open  for  the  accommodation  of   guests,  at  reasonable  rates. 
Visitors    to    this    section    will     also   find     accommodation    at     Cranberry,    Blowing    Rock,    Cloudland, 
Linville  Falls  and  Grandfather  INLountain. 

FISHING. 
Within  a  radius  of  three  miles,    the  Grandlather  ^Liiuntain  being  the  centre,  are  the   head-waters  of 
eight    stream^  :   the   Watauga,    Boone    Fork,    Linville,    West    Fork,    Grandmother   Fork,    Wilson's   Creek, 
Banners  Elk  and  North  Toe  Rivers. 

Bein-  well    stocked   with    mountain    trout,    they  furnish,  in  proper  season,  excellent  sport. 


MOUNTAIN    TROUT    FROM    THE    LINUILLE. 


Microfilmed 
SOLINET/ASERL  PROJECT 


RAILROADS. 

Linville  is  so  situated  tliat  the  extension  of  several  railroads,  now  being  built  and  in  contempla- 
tion, will  pass  ihroug-h  the  town  site.  ■  The  Southern  and  Western  Air  Line,  being  built  from  Shelby 
to  Cranberry,  will  pass  through   Linville  when  completed. 

At  present  the  terminus  of  the  East  Tennessee  and  Western  North  Carolina  Railroad,  is  ten  miles 
distant  at  Cranberry,  that  of  the  Chester  and  Lenoir  thirty  miles  distant,  at  Lenoir.  The  Atlanta.  Ashe- 
ville  and  Baltimore,  and  branches  from  the  Charleston,  Cincinnati  and  Chicago,  the  Atlantic  and 
Danville,  and  the  Norfolk  and  Western,  are   being  talked  of  and  are  among  the  possibilities. 

HOW     TO     COME. 

The  best  way,  at  present,  is  via,  the  East  Tennessee,  Virginia  and  Georgia  Railroad  to  Johnson 
City,  Tenn.  (through  Pullman  cars):  thence  via.  the  East  Tennessee  and  Western  North  Carolina 
Railroad,  through  very  fine  scenery,  to  Cranberry  Hotel  or  Elk  Park,  whence  conveyance  can  be  had 
to  Linville. 

Parties  from  the  South  can  come  to  Cranberry:  or  to  Lenoir,  and  thence  by  wav  of  Blowing  Rock: 
or  to  Morganton,  and  thence  by  Piedmont  Springs  to  Linville. 

FOR     FURTHER     INFORMATION.     ADDRESS 

LinVillg   lAPi^oVe^ieNT  (0., 

Linville,  Mitcliell  Co.,    ' 

NORTH     CAROLINA. 


MAP 

OF  COUNTRY  SURROUNDING 
LIN  VILLE. 


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